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U.S. Vice President Joe Biden left Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday after what he and leaders of the mostly English-speaking 15-member Caribbean Community and the Dominican Republic called “frank” discussions on issues of mutual interests.

“It was completely open, completely frank and completely straightforward — even where we disagreed,” Biden said before heading to Brazil, where he will spend three days discussing energy matters and improved U.S. relations with the South American power.

Does anyone really believe that any amount of alcohol could make Biden any less coherent?

A few points from the article:

Persad-Bissessar said the leaders’ discussion with Biden was “at times brutal” as they voiced concerns on issues ranging from trade and security to the perception that the U.S. doesn’t care about the Caribbean. The U.S. and rum-producing Caribbean nations have been in a long-running trade dispute over subsides for U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico producers, while the U.S. and Antigua and Barbuda remain at odds over Internet gambling websites.

The security issue is huge. The Caribbean provides direct access to the Southern US. A route that can be used to smuggle illegal immigrants, small arms and drugs can be used to smuggle terrorists, WMDs and cash to support terror operations. We need them to work with us, and they need us to provide support for their efforts.

The Internet gambling is also a big issue for them. The US ban on Internet gambling is perceived as a protectionist act in order to support casino gambling, which also cuts into the tourism in the Bahamas (Freeport was a big gambling mecca). This also plays into the subsidies for Puerto Rican and USVI rum exports, another area where our protectionist stance hurts their economy.

These are important topics for regional allies who need to know that we are supporting their economic growth and security concerns, and we sent Joe Biden. The only thing that we could have done that would have made this worse is if we'd put him in full clown makeup.